In Plato’s “The Apology,” Socrates is defending himself before the Athenian government on charges of heresy and corrupting the youth. Socrates’ introspective reflection on pertinent issues and his own life are ruled wrong by Athenian State. As a result, he faces charges from this decision to pursue a life full of philosophical exploration, and this is what leads him to be brought before the court. However, once the trial begins, instead of repenting and likely being able to walk away with a nonfatal punishment, he claims, the good life is an examined life, and ultimately, an unexamined life is not worth living to defend himself. Socrates believes in this claim with such sustenance; it is what ultimately causes him to lose his life, by not willing
In the Apology by Plato, Socrates defends himself against his accusers in court, and begins by declaring that he is not an especially great speaker but that he only speaks the truth. In this, he tells his accusers that they should not fear him but only the truth itself. In the depiction of Socrates' last speech, he makes a bold claim that he has been deemed the wisest man in Athens by the god of Delphi ( Plato, ., Jowett, n.d. ). He goes on to explain that while he searched for those that thought themselves wise,
Reading Response: The Apology Analysis “Why does Socrates believe himself to be innocent?” The Apology is a record of Socrates defense to his jurors who had charged him with impiety. A major part of his defense, is that the Oracle at Delphi proclaims him to be the wisest man alive. Later Socrates relays a second message of the Oracle that explains the reason that he is wise. “God only is wise... the wisdom of men is little or nothing”.
Socrates was a greek philosopher who found himself in trouble with his fellow citizens and court for standing his grounds on his new found beliefs from his studies about philosophical virtue, justice, and truth. In “Apology” written by Plato, Socrates defended himself in trial, not with the goal of escaping the death sentence, but with the goal of doing the right thing and standing for his beliefs. With this mindset, Socrates had no intention of kissing up to the Athenians to save his life. Many will argue that Socrates’ speech was not very effective because he did not fight for his life, he just accepted the death sentence that he was punished with. In his speech he said, “But now it’s time to leave, time for me to die and for you to live.”
Introduction The Apology was written by Plato, and relates Socrates’ defense at his trial on charges of corrupting the youth and impiety. Socrates argues that he is innocent of both charges. Plato reports the contents of three speeches delivered by Socrates in his own protection in court which has been arranged over him by the Athenian democrats and has terminated in the death sentence to the great philosopher. The word "apology" in a literal translation means "justification". Plato's purpose when writing "Apology" was to acquit posthumously Socrates from false accusation.
Socrates was a man that was in search of the truth about wisdom. However, it became more then just a search when it brought him to trail of accusations. As a philosopher Socrates was known to overdrawn ideas and to frustrate anyone he was talking to. He is always in search of a better idea and for anyone who has experienced Socrates could assume he is making up his own actualities. This becomes evident in “ Apology” written by Plato, where Socrates was brought in charges for corrupting the minds of the youth and not believing in the Gods.
In the reading of “Plato Apology”, Socrates’ vindicates what he values and beliefs to a jury to prove his innocence. Indeed, Miletus a poet, Anytus a craftsmen and Lycon a politician brought an oral charges against Socrates’ attested him of impiety and corrupting youth, required him to appear before the King Archon the legal
The ‘Apology’ is a form of dialectic philosophy. It illustrates the charges brought upon Socrates and the self-defense he demonstrates during the trial. Socrates is accused of ‘corruption of the youth’ and ‘impiety’. Socrates is found guilty of having faith in the wrong Gods and Meletus accuses him of not acknowledging the sun and moon as gods but as masses of stone. Socrates is accused of studying things in heaven and below the earth.
Despite the title of this historical piece of work, this speech, made by Socrates at his trial, was anything but an apology. Plato, who wrote Apology, was a student of Socrates and this is his account of the trial. Even though he was present at the trial, the colloquy may have been adjusted by Plato to reflect what he thought Socrates should have said or what he thought Socrates meant to say. Plato was very fond of Socrates, therefore the way he may present him can be bias. Socrates attempted to persuade the men of Athens of his innocence by presenting himself as a good man and an authority of knowledge, as declared by the Delphic oracle.
The importance of “The Apology” and Socrates is that he served as a symbol towards the fundamental question of the “why” in life. Socrates argues that in a society like Athens where the ability to ask these types of questions are denied, the overall happiness of its citizens will eventually perish. The reason being that material objects can only satisfy the soul for so long. This is why Socrates felt that it was his duty to remind the leaders of Athens of the importance of their humility. He chose to seek wisdom within himself
Plato's “The Apology of Socrates” is a speech Socrates makes at the trial in which he is charged with not recognizing the gods recognized by the state, inventing new idols, and corrupting the youth of Athens. Socrates' speech, however, is by no means an "apology" in our modern understanding of the word; the name of the dialogue derives from the Greek "apologia," which translates as a defense, or a speech made in defense of the convicted. Thus, in this reading, Socrates attempts to defend himself and his conduct; certainly not to apologize for it. For the most part, Socrates speaks in a very plain, conversational manner towards all his charges that Meletus and Athens has filed against him.
His unintentional leadership of his new wave of knowledge and exposure to the true nature of man, led to his conviction of corrupting of the youth. After his unlawful conviction, he views the law of Athens as being unjustifiable and corrupt, and he alludes that their response to the actions of exposing the truths, further uncovers their ignorance. To have a valid understanding the meaning of the Apology, one must evaluate the story as an entirety. When Socrates is first informed that he is the wisest man in all of Athens, he questions the authenticity of wisdom. His disbelief in the Said statement, moves him to conduct a study through questioning those within the city of Athens who were deemed wise.
Again, he reveals his way of thinking about the world through questioning others and allowing them to reveal it for themselves. During Socrates’s trial in Apology, he does not try to sway his audience in his favor in any way, he approaches his defense with the same composure that he would approach any sort of philosophical discussion with his peers. He simply presents the facts that are useful and relevant to his defense and he does not beg or plea or use complex rhetoric; it appears that Plato was trying to paint Socrates as something of a martyr for his cause. The way Socrates is portrayed standing noble and loyal to his teachings show that Plato clearly thinks Socrates was not in the wrong, and it is evident that Plato wants history to convey that too. He also reveals that if given the option of philosophy or death, he would choose to die.
In Apology, Socrates faces possible execution as he stands trial in front of his fellow Athenian men. This jury of men must decide whether Socrates has acted impiously against the gods and if he has corrupted the youth of Athens. Socrates claims in his defense that he wants to live a private life, away from public affairs and teachings in Athens. He instead wants to focus on self-examination and learning truths from those in Athens through inquiry. Socrates argues that "a [man] who really fights for justice must lead a private, not a public, life if [he] is to survive for even a short time" (32a).
The term “apology comes from the Greek word apologia which means to defend. In this essay I would like to explain why I believe that The Apology by Plato should be classified as pity and fear, in regards to Greek tragedy. I believe that this is true because I can personally empathize with Socrates; this will be discussed later on in this essay. A tragic hero is considered to be an individual with an intellectual flaw or error, Socrates fits this description; Socrates failed to understand that he could not empathize with the jurors because they simply wanted him to acknowledge his prior offenses, while he only sought out telling the truth and not sullying his own moral code. Socrates should be considered a tragic hero because he had an intellectual error, not an ethical one.
